You have completed a project for a client at his facility. The project has lasted for 18 months and you have generated many reports, plans, change request forms, and other documents about the project work. What should you do with the project documentation?

Upon project completion, all documentation, including plans, reports, and lessons learned, must be systematically collected and archived. This process is a critical part of the "Close Project or Phase" activities. These archived records become part of the organization's process assets (OPAs). This historical information is an invaluable resource for future projects, aiding in planning, estimating, risk identification, and overall organizational learning. It ensures that knowledge gained is retained and leveraged, promoting continuous improvement within the organization.

A. While the client receives final deliverables and specific handover documents, providing them with all internal project files is not standard practice and may breach confidentiality.
B. Destroying project documentation is a significant error, as it eliminates valuable historical data and lessons learned, hindering future project success and organizational improvement.
D. The performing organization is responsible for its own records. Leaving them for the client to manage is unprofessional and risks the loss of important organizational assets.

1. Project Management Institute. (2017). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) – Sixth Edition. Section 4.7.3.4, Organizational Process Assets Updates, p. 128. This section explicitly states that project files, project closure documents, and historical information are outputs of the Close Project or Phase process and are used to update the organization's process assets.

2. Project Management Institute. (2017). The Standard for Program Management – Fourth Edition. Section 5.5.2.1, Program Closure Activities, p. 93. This standard notes that a key activity in closure is the "Archiving of program information," where the manager ensures all information is stored in appropriate repositories for future use.

3. Kerzner, H. (2017). Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling (12th ed.). Wiley. Chapter 17, "Project Closeout," discusses the importance of creating a final project report and archiving records to build a historical database for the organization.